American baseball player (1930?2018)
Baseball player
Wally Moon
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Moon in 1961.
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Outfielder
|
Born:
(
1930-04-03
)
April 3, 1930
Bay, Arkansas
, U.S.
|
Died:
February 9, 2018
(2018-02-09)
(aged 87)
Bryan, Texas
, U.S.
|
Batted:
Left
Threw:
Right
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|
April 13, 1954, for the St. Louis Cardinals
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September 12, 1965, for the Los Angeles Dodgers
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Batting average
| .289
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Home runs
| 142
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Runs batted in
| 661
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|
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Wallace Wade Moon
[1]
(April 3, 1930 ? February 9, 2018) was an American professional baseball
outfielder
in
Major League Baseball
. Moon played his 12-year career in the major leagues for the
St. Louis Cardinals
(1954?1958) and
Los Angeles Dodgers
(1959?1965). He batted left-handed and threw right-handed.
Moon was the
1954 National League Rookie of the Year
. He was an
All-Star
for two seasons and a
Gold Glove
winner one season. Moon
batted
.295 or more for seven seasons. He led the
National League
in
triples
in 1959 and in
fielding percentage
as a
left fielder
in 1960 and 1961.
Moon was a three-time World Series champion with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1959, 1963, and 1965.
Youth
[
edit
]
Moon was named after
Wallace Wade
, a former
college football
coach at the
University of Alabama
and
Duke University
. From a family of educators, he earned a master's degree in administrative education from
Texas A&M University
in
College Station
while he was still in the minor leagues.
[1]
He coached from 1953 to 1954 at
Lake City
, also in Craighead County, Arkansas.
Major league career
[
edit
]
In the spring of 1954, the Cardinals told Moon to report to their minor league spring training camp. He ignored the order and reported instead to
St. Petersburg
with the Cardinals. He said that he would make the team or quit baseball. They let him stay, and by the end of the spring training he replaced
Enos Slaughter
in the outfield. To make room for him on the roster, St. Louis sent Slaughter to the
New York Yankees
.
Moon made his major league debut on April 13, 1954. In his first
at-bat
, despite chants of "We want Slaughter", he belted a
home run
against the
Chicago Cubs
; in the same game
Tom Alston
became the first
African American
to play for the Cardinals. Moon finished his rookie season with a .304
batting average
, 12 home runs, 76
runs batted in
, and career-high numbers in
runs
(106),
hits
(193),
doubles
(29), and
stolen bases
(18) in 151 games. He earned both the
MLB
Rookie of the Year
and
The Sporting News
Rookie of the Year
honors. Almost a unanimous vote, Moon won easily over
Ernie Banks
,
Gene Conley
and
Hank Aaron
.
[1]
A fine left fielder with a good arm, Moon also played
right field
and
center
as well as
first base
. He hit a career-high 24 homers in
1957
, and made the
All-Star
team in
1957
and
1959
(two games were played). Twice in his career, Moon compiled double figures in doubles, triples, home runs and stolen bases: 22, 11, 16, 12 in 1956, and 26, 11, 19, 15 in
1959
, his first year with the Dodgers.
After the 1958 season, the Cardinals traded Moon to the Dodgers for outfielder
Gino Cimoli
. Both players were coming off years when they batted below .250; the Cardinals also sent pitcher
Phil Paine
, who never played for the Dodgers. Moon was initially concerned about batting in the converted
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
because right field was 440 feet (130 m) away, making it difficult for a left-handed batter. However, the left field seats were only 251 feet (77 m) away, protected by a 42-foot-high (13 m) screen. After consulting with friend and mentor
Stan Musial
, Moon adjusted his batting stance to emphasize hitting to left. The results were very successful.
[1]
In his first season with the Dodgers, the team won the
World Championship
. Moon provided support in the lineup for
Duke Snider
,
Gil Hodges
and
Don Demeter
. He gained quick public acclaim in 1959 for the "Moon shots" that he hit over the high left field screen.
[1]
[2]
Moon hit a home run in the sixth and final game of that World Series, which the Dodgers won over the
Chicago White Sox
. He also caught
Luis Aparicio
's fly ball for the final out of the Series.
Moon was a
Gold Glove Award
winner for left field in
1960
leading
National League
left fielders in
assists
,
double plays
, and
fielding percentage
. He had another good season in
1961
, batting .328 with 17 home runs and 88 runs batted in while leading National League left fielders in fielding percentage.
A career .289 hitter, Moon hit 142 home runs with 661 runs batted in during 1457 games, with a .371
on-base percentage
and a .445
slugging average
for a combined .816
on-base plus slugging
percentage. His career
fielding percentage
at all three outfield positions and first base was .980. He also scored the last run ever in the Coliseum.
[1]
He retired as a player after the 1965 season.
Post-playing career
[
edit
]
In 1969, Moon was a batting coach for the San Diego Padres, joining
manager
Preston Gomez
and
pitching coach
and former teammate
Roger Craig
.
Moon went on to become
athletic director
and baseball coach at
John Brown University
, and a coach and minor league manager and owner of the
San Antonio Dodgers
for four years beginning in the late 1970s.
Moon managed the minor-league Frederick Keys, a Carolina League affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, in 1990 and 1991.
Moon moved to
Bryan, Texas
, where he lived for over 25 years. He retired in 1998. He was married to Bettye and had five children and seven grandchildren.
[1]
Moon is featured on many websites featuring baseball cards, as he sported a prominent
unibrow
.
The January 27, 1960, episode ("The Larry Hanify Story") of the popular TV western
Wagon Train
featured Moon in a brief role. The end credits included: "And Introducing Wally Moon as Sheriff Bender." There was no baseball tie-in with his character, but the sheriff was hit by a bullet during a shoot-out with Tommy Sands' bad guy.
Moon died on February 9, 2018, at the age of 87.
[3]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
External links
[
edit
]
|
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- 1958:
Aaron
,
Mays
,
Robinson
- 1959:
Aaron
,
Brandt
,
Mays
- 1960:
Aaron
,
Mays
,
Moon
- 1961:
Clemente
,
Mays
,
Pinson
- 1962:
Clemente
,
Mays
,
Virdon
- 1963:
Clemente
,
Flood
,
Mays
- 1964:
Clemente
,
Flood
,
Mays
- 1965:
Clemente
,
Flood
,
Mays
- 1966:
Clemente
,
Flood
,
Mays
- 1967:
Clemente
,
Flood
,
Mays
- 1968:
Clemente
,
Flood
,
Mays
- 1969:
Clemente
,
Flood
,
Rose
- 1970:
Agee
,
Clemente
,
Rose
- 1971:
Bo. Bonds
,
Clemente
,
W. Davis
- 1972:
Cedeno
,
Clemente
,
W. Davis
- 1973:
Bo. Bonds
,
Cedeno
,
W. Davis
- 1974:
Bo. Bonds
,
Cedeno
,
Geronimo
- 1975:
Cedeno
,
Geronimo
,
Maddox
- 1976:
Cedeno
,
Geronimo
,
Maddox
- 1977:
Geronimo
,
Maddox
,
Parker
- 1978:
Maddox
,
Parker
,
Valentine
- 1979:
Maddox
,
Parker
,
Winfield
- 1980:
Dawson
,
Maddox
,
Winfield
- 1981:
Baker
,
Dawson
,
Maddox
- 1982:
Dawson
,
Maddox
,
Murphy
- 1983:
Dawson
,
McGee
,
Murphy
- 1984:
Dawson
,
Dernier
,
Murphy
- 1985:
Dawson
,
McGee
,
Murphy
- 1986:
Gwynn
,
McGee
,
Murphy
- 1987:
E. Davis
,
Dawson
,
Gwynn
- 1988:
E. Davis
,
Dawson
,
Van Slyke
- 1989:
E. Davis
,
Gwynn
,
Van Slyke
- 1990:
Ba. Bonds
,
Gwynn
,
Van Slyke
- 1991:
Ba. Bonds
,
Gwynn
,
Van Slyke
- 1992:
Ba. Bonds
,
Van Slyke
,
Walker
- 1993:
Ba. Bonds
,
Grissom
,
Walker
- 1994:
Ba. Bonds
,
Grissom
,
Lewis
- 1995:
Finley
,
Grissom
,
Mondesi
- 1996:
Ba. Bonds
,
Finley
,
Grissom
- 1997:
Ba. Bonds
,
Mondesi
,
Walker
- 1998:
Ba. Bonds
,
Jones
,
Walker
- 1999:
Finley
,
Jones
,
Walker
- 2000:
Edmonds
,
Finley
,
Jones
- 2001:
Edmonds
,
Jones
,
Walker
- 2002:
Edmonds
,
Jones
,
Walker
- 2003:
Cruz
,
Edmonds
,
Jones
- 2004:
Edmonds
,
Finley
,
Jones
- 2005:
Abreu
,
Edmonds
,
Jones
- 2006:
Beltran
,
Cameron
,
Jones
- 2007:
Beltran
,
Jones
,
Francoeur
,
Rowand
- 2008:
Beltran
,
McLouth
,
Victorino
- 2009:
Bourn
,
Kemp
,
Victorino
- 2010:
Bourn
,
Gonzalez
,
Victorino
- 2011:
Ethier
,
Kemp
,
Parra
- 2012:
Gonzalez
,
Heyward
,
McCutchen
- 2013:
Gomez
,
Gonzalez
,
Parra
- 2014:
Heyward
,
Lagares
,
Yelich
- 2015:
Heyward
,
Marte
,
Pollock
- 2016:
Heyward
,
Inciarte
,
Marte
- 2017:
Heyward
,
Inciarte
,
Ozuna
- 2018:
Dickerson
,
Inciarte
,
Markakis
- 2019:
Bellinger
,
Cain
,
Peralta
- 2020:
Betts
,
Grisham
,
O'Neill
- 2021:
Bader
,
Duvall
,
O'Neill
- 2022:
Betts
,
Grisham
,
Happ
- 2023:
Doyle
,
Happ
,
Tatis Jr.
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MLB Rookie
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AL Rookie
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NL Rookie
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AL Rookie
Player
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AL Rookie
Pitcher
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NL Rookie
Player
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NL Rookie
Pitcher
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